00:00Today on Rappler
00:06The Commission on Audit flags 926 million pesos ACOP funds released to ineligible beneficiaries
00:18Matugas-owned Chargao Blue Resort and Spa reclaimed land in a protected area
00:22The Supreme Court affirms the murder conviction of the three policemen in the killing of Quien de los Santos
00:27And Thailand and Cambodia agreed to hold a meeting of defense officials to resume the ceasefire
00:33The Commission on Audit flags the release of 926 million pesos for the Ayuda sa Kaposang Kita Program or ACAP citing system abuse
00:42This after state auditors found thousands of beneficiaries getting payments multiple times or getting payouts even if they were not eligible
00:49COA released the findings of its 2024 audit of the Department of Social, Welfare and Development made public on Thursday, December 18
00:56Payouts include rice assistance, medicine and laboratory cost assistance, and food assistance, which are given every three months
01:03Eligible individuals can also get funeral assistance and hospital bills assistance, among others
01:08COA urged the DSWD to set up a centralized national beneficiary verification platform with real-time checks and flags to prevent duplicate or erroneous payouts
01:17ACAP was launched under the 19th Congress by then-House Speaker Martin Romualdez, the President's cousin
01:23Matugas-owned Siargao Blue Resort and Spa reclaimed land despite being located in a protected area
01:30Located in Barangay Katangnan, General Luna, it is one of the top luxury resorts in the island
01:35General Luna is part of the Siargao Islands' protected landscape and seascape
01:39Philippine Space Agency Engineer Ruel de la Cruz tells Rappler, quote,
01:43From the satellite data examined, there is extensive development in the area
01:46Portions formerly showing water surfaces are now covered with land and vegetation
01:50Reclamation is generally not allowed in protected areas, though not explicitly stated in the law
01:56A DENR 2018 guideline says, quote,
01:59In no case shall protected areas be subjected to reclamation
02:02The SIPLAS Protected Area Management Office has flagged reclamation as a threat to the island's mangroves
02:08Noting that coastal development is carried out by local governments or private landowners
02:12The Supreme Court affirms the murder conviction of the three policemen who killed 17-year-old
02:19Quien de los Santos during the drug war of former President Rodrigo Duterte
02:22The High Court's 2nd Division found Police Officer 3 Arnel Oares, P. Owen Jeremiah Spereda,
02:29and P. Owen Gerwin Cruz guilty of murder, sentencing them to reclusion perpetua or up to 40 years in prison
02:35They were also ordered to pay the de los Santos family a total of 275,000 pesos in damages
02:41This decision affirms the earlier ruling of the Regional Trial Court and the Court of Appeals
02:46which convicted the three policemen without parole
02:48De los Santos became the face of Duterte's bloody war on drugs, which human rights groups say killed nearly 30,000 people
02:55To date, there have only been five known convictions of policemen involved in the drug war, de los Santos' case included
03:01Thailand and Cambodia agreed to hold a December 24 meeting of defense officials aimed towards resuming a month-old ceasefire
03:10This as fierce border fighting between the two countries entered the third week with at least 80 people killed
03:16The decision was made at a special meeting in Kuala Lumpur, where Southeast Asian foreign ministers sought to revive a truce
03:22The truce was earlier brokered by ASEAN Chair Malaysia and U.S. President Donald Trump after deadly clashes in July
03:28Thailand and Cambodia have exchanged daily rocket and artillery fire along their border since the truce collapsed
03:34The top diplomats of the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations urged both sides to show restraint and stop the fighting
03:41while welcoming Wednesday's planned meeting of the General Border Committee for bilateral talks
03:46Meantime, the Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs says Manila is ready to mediate between Cambodia and Thailand when it chairs ASEAN in 2026
03:53And that's today's wrap, I'm Julian Serenio, thank you for watching
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